Goaltender Josh Tordjman – December’s Delight

When Josh Tordjman went “Dominick Hasek” on Houston’s Peter Zingoni late in the first period, I thought, “Must be December!”

A year ago to the day, JT shutout the Syracuse Crunch, 3-0, ending an 0-16-1 slide, a hole the Rampage almost dug themselves out of by season’s end, just missing the playoffs.

This year, a similar, though not as damaging slump has the Rampage in the division basement again, but once again, December is starting out to be San Antonio’s month.

Last season, Tordjman entered the 12th month with one win in a dozen games. Perhaps that career in solid waste disposal was looking more appealing than facing rubber and wearing the Rampage pads.

But then December dawned, and Tordjman suddenly played like a kid who thought he would get a lump of coal in his stocking if he didn’t wake up and start pulling his weight.

You might say he did just that, going 9-2-0 with three shutouts in December. That reversed an 0-8-1 November last season.

He followed that up with a 9-4 January with another whitewash to earn the goalie of the month honor — his 18-6 record propelling the Rampage into thoughts of the impossible — actually making the postseason after starting the year 2-20-0-1.

And on a night one year later, when Rampage players would be sent off the ice with penalties in the first and second periods, the Montreal native had to be his sharpest and focused.

“Defensemen have been blocking shots and I’ve been seeing the puck,” said Tordjman, deflecting credit as well as shots on goal.

“Guys are battling and giving up their bodies for each other and the results are showing now.”

Those results are three straight wins after the disastrous 0-10-0-1 stretch that could have sabotaged another season of Rampage hockey.

“Tonight I felt focused and I felt confident and that’s a big step for us as a team.” said Tordjman, who followed up last November’s nightmare with December’s delight, finishing second to Ottawa’s Elliott in the AHL goaltender of the month balloting before winning the award for January.

And as for the big zinger on Zingoni?

“That was basically desperation on my part,” said Tordjman of the “Hasek” save after Tordjman was caught out of position at the top of the crease when the puck found the Houston shooter at the glove side of the net. Tordjman launched himself at the post, and snared the shot about a foot off the ice with his big mitt.

“I gotta have that for 60 minutes, that second and third effort, and if I do, I should be doing good here.”

Indeed — that’s the kind of big save that was missing in the 11-game slide — a save that picks a team up, rather than the red light going on and deflating the rest of the club, and deflation leads to defeat.

But the team seems energized once more under new coach Ray Edwards, who is probably in a booth at Chili’s right now, building confidence with the server who’ll get his chicken fingers. Edwards is always spewing his gospel of Norman Vincent Peale.

“For some reason we were a step behind tonight. Give credit to Houston because they do that to teams the way they work. We didn’t generate a lot tonight. But you know what I liked about this effort? Even though we didn’t have our “A” game, we found a way to win. When you struggle a little bit, it’s nice to know you have guys like Kevin Porter who can make plays like that.”

Interruption — Porter took a great veteran feed (more on that in three lines — read on) at center ice from Anders Eriksson, playing in his 1,000 pro game, flew into the zone, faked out first, Houston defender Maxime Noreau with, in basketball terms, a cross-over dribble, and then goaltender Anton Khudobin before slipping a cool backhander past the Houston masked man for the goal of the season.

Eriksson had the puck at center ice, saw Houston in a full-scale line change, put on the brakes and instead of dumping the puck in the zone like 99 percent of hockey players would, or carry it into the zone, he actually passed the puck backwards Porter just after Porter past the redline at full steam. Porter then zipped into the zone with four of the Houston players on their heels for the goal. Now, if Eriksson dumps it in, all Houston players skating off the bench at full steam, have the inside track, get possession and move up ice. Critical play and one we may want to remember come April.

Go ahead coach– sorry to interrupt …

“Houston came in, played an excellent road game, probably deserved a better fate, but we’ll take it.”

“Anders gives you so much poise back there. He calms that group down. To throw him in the fire against a team that forechecks real hard, a tough opponent,” probably a little unfair on the veteran, who has won the Stanley Cup with the Red Wings in 1998. He was part of the deal that sent Chris Chelios to Detroit from Chicago, after Eriksson was drafted in the first round by the Wings, the 22nd overall selection in 1993.

Observations from the balcony press box

After being outshot in the first two periods, 26-13, did the words “shoot the *(&%$# puck” come forth from Ray Edwards’s lips during the second break?

“Maybe once or twice,” said Edwards. “They know, they don’t need me to come in there and say that. We had to forget about the first forty (minutes), because we weren’t great, but we as a group said, ‘ok, we have 20 minutes to have a chance to win a hockey game, came out, scored right away. I thought our last 20 was our best 20.”

Khudobin had a tremendous stop on Chad Kolarik on a setup from behind the net by Porter, who stole the puck on the wing board, went behind the net for a quick pass to Kolarik who slammed the puck into what seemed like an open net. But Khudobin showed by his GAA is sub-2.00 by reacting well and making the stop.

Good to see Sean Sullivan back out on the ice for the third period after slamming into the boards at an odd angle in the second. Sullivan just seemed to be getting his AHL legs under him (goal, 3 assists last two games) after a visit to the desert in October may have derailed some momentum rather than help him, and it would be a shame to see him laid up for any time. Was concerned he’d have trouble getting the planes to “fly in formation” again, but he looked ok in the third.

Newest Anti-Rampage killer for the Aeros — Jean-Michel Daoust (pronounced da-OOO) scored both Houston goals. He takes the place of Corey Locke, who is playing in the Eastern Conference. Danny Irman, who finds San Antonio welcoming for his infrequent scoring frenzies, came up empty on four shots Friday night.

Clayton Stoner, a sure handed and levelheaded defenseman as there is in the game, made a rookie mistake in the game’s last minute that nearly cost the Aeros a point in the standings. His delay of game penalty for shooting the puck over the glass with :46 left in regulation gave the Rampage power play a chance to win it in regulation. Fortunately for him, the San Antonio power play is still looking for its sealegs and Rampage shooters never had a good chance on Khudobin.

Gotta say it again!

What a goal by Kevin Porter!!!! He now has four goals and four assists in his last six games, and since Phoenix General Manager, Dan Maloney was among the 4,546 in the place, Porter may be back on a plane to Arizona shortly after his performance tonight.

Quotes about Thursday’s big win in Houston, which saw the Rampage spot the Aeros a 3-0 second period lead, only to score a half-dozen unanswered goals in the 6-3 win in a building where San Antonio hockey teams travel to die.

The reason for the comeback? One word, according to both Tordjman and Porter, quoting German prison guard Schultz — HOGGAN!

“I think it was Jeff Hoggan. We were down 3-0 and he came out and had a great shift, scored a goal and helped set up another, and was working hard and that got everyone going,” said Porter, who scored the eventual game winner after the Rampage set a team record with three goals in 1:37. “After that, we were flying. We were all excited, everyone wanted to play. I think it was that one shift where him and his linemates got the whole team going.”

“Being down 3-0 and coming back to win, 6-3, I’ve never been on a team like that,” added the former college hockey player of the year.

Tordjman agreed, saying Hoggan wouldn’t let the team get down on itself and quit. “The guy is an amazing leader.”

IT’S THE SWEDES!!!

Last season in that 3-0 Rampage win, newcomer Swedish forward Joakim Lindstrom scored a goal and an assist to get the team off the schnide. This year, it may be his fellow countryman, Anders Erikkson who helps the Rampage to greener pastures.

I”ve said it before, with the exception of Peter Forsberg, who’s antics on the ice is totally un-Swedish, I think the Swedes are the nicest people in the world!

And if Erikkson can help put the Rampage on the playoff map, this formula of importing Swedes could catch on as the impetus plan in the hockey world!